Monday Qualifiers: Valspar Championship

Four familiar names to the PGA TOUR came out of Monday Qualifying for the Valspar Championship including one former winner and a couple of veterans with some near misses.

Sangmoon Bae, Brian Davis and Roberto Diaz shared honors with 6-under 66s while David Hearn came out of a 3-for-1 playoff over Steve Marino and Piri Borja.

Here’s a closer look at the players who advanced out of Monday’s qualifier at Southern Hills Plantation Club.

SANGMOON BAE (66)

Age: 32
Hometown: Daegu, South Korea
Alma mater: Sungkyunkwan University
PGA TOUR starts: 136
Cuts made: 75
Best PGA TOUR finish: WIN – 2013 AT&T Byron Nelson, 2015 Safeway Open
Notes: Two-time winner on the PGA TOUR who left after Presidents Cup appearance in 2015 to perform mandatory military duty … Three from 10 this season in made cuts with T35 at Farmers Insurance Open the best result … Has 13 International victories to his name across the Asian, Japan, One Asia and Korean Tours … Currently ranked 327th in the world.

BRIAN DAVIS (66)

Age: 44
Hometown: London, England
PGA TOUR starts: 362
Cuts made: 217
Best PGA TOUR finish: 2nd – 2007 FedEx St. Jude Classic; 2008 Barracuda Championship; 2009 AT&T Byron Nelson; 2010 RBC Heritage; 2010 Charles Schwab Challenge
Notes: 5-time runner up on the PGA TOUR this veteran hasn’t had a top-10 since 2015 … Two-time European Tour winner … Three starts this season with two missed cuts and a T42 at the Puerto Rico Open.

ROBERTO DIAZ (66)

Age: 32
Hometown: Veracruz, Mexico
Alma mater: University of South Carolina Aiken

PGA TOUR starts: 39
Cuts made: 15
Best PGA TOUR finish: T10, 2019 Puerto Rico Open
Notes: Nine starts this season with two top 25s, one a recent top-10 in Puerto Rico, to sit 165th in the FedExCup… Finished T2 with Abraham Ancer for Mexico at last year’s ISPS Handa Melbourne World Cup of Golf… Currently ranked 560th in the world.

DAVID HEARN (67)

Age: 39
Hometown: Brampton, Ontario, Canada
Alma mater: University of Wyoming
PGA TOUR starts: 258
Cuts made: 158
Best PGA TOUR finish: P2, 2013 John Deere Classic; 2015 Military Tribute at the Greenbrier.
Notes: Canadian veteran has two runner-up finishes on TOUR, both playoff losses … Four made cuts from eight starts this season with a best finish of T15 at The RSM Classic to sit 164th in the FedExCup … Currently 486th in the world rankings

LAST WEEK’S QUALIFIERS (Honda Classic)
MDF. Drew Nesbitt, 71-71-77
MC. Erik Compton, 73-74
MC. David Pastore, 75-69
MC. Blayne Barber, 73-78

THIS SEASON’S QUALIFIERS
Qualifiers: 43
Made cut: 15
Top-25: 3
Top-10s: 2 (Aaron Baddeley, T4 at Safeway Open; Corey Conners, T3 at Sony Open)
Best finish: Corey Conners, T3 at Sony Open in Hawaii
Most times qualified: Corey Conners (2), Aaron Baddeley (2), David Pastore (2)